Sunday, February 19, 2012

Mimi Kirk's RAW VEGAN Lasagna


Below is the recipe for Mimi Kirks Raw Vegan Lasagna.
She is one of my raw food inspirations.
the reason I've posted it on my blog, is you can only access it on the net via You tube rather then a written recipe, So this was directly cut and pasted from her notes under a photo on her Facebook page. 
The only thing I didn't put in this time was the marinated mushrooms and it was still divine without them! 



Mandolin slicer or sharp knife
Blender
Food processor
Dehydrator, (or oven can be used with door ajar on lowest degree of heat)
For best results, it’s best to plan this dish a couple days ahead so the cheese can ferment. (it can also be made with out fermentation)
A Mandolin slicer can be purchased in several price ranges. It is a very useful tool for making beautiful even slices for your lasagna and has many other uses. You can use a knife to slice the zucchini into thin even slices if you don’t have this tool.
My lasagna consists of three to four layers of noodles. I use a flat long plate that will fit in the dehydrator. The size you make is up to you. This recipe will make two plates of lasagna 4 inches wide and about 10 inches long. I don’t use a Pyrex baking dish as you would in conventional lasagna as its harder to remove the portions unlike a regular lasagna where the cheese help it to stick together.
You will be making 3 sauces, one red pasta sauce, one pesto, and a one cheese and using 3-4 large zucchinis, mine were approximately 7 inches long and 5 inches around.
Make the cheese first as it preferred to sit overnight to ferment. You can use the cheese right away if needed, but its not quite as good. If you decide to use the cheese immediately, you will need to add more nuts to thicken the mixture. Add extra nuts after you have make the recipe so you can judge how many more nuts you may have to use to make a thick creamy mixture.
For the cheese
1 1/2 c cashews, soaked 4 hours
4 Tbs. Irish moss paste (you can leave this out, but for me it work to harden the cheese to the proper consistency) you can Google Irish Moss to learn more about it. To use Irish Moss, it must be soaked overnight to soften, then blended in water to make a smooth paste. Can be kept in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks after blended. 
1/2 tsp Probiotics powder (to help fermenting and curing process)
1 Tablespoon of nutritional yeast (not raw)
1 tsp lemon juice
good pinch or two of salt
Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth. start with 1/2 c water and add more if needed to make smooth but thick mixture without any lumps. Add as little as you need and do not make it runny. Place a strainer over a bowl and line it with cheese cloth, Pour cheese mixture into a strainer and place another piece of cheesecloth on top. Wrap up the sides of the cloth to cover the mixture and place a weight on top just heavy enough to slowly and gently push out the extra liquid. Leave for 24 hours to culture at room temp. Finished cheese can be stored in the refrigerator for at least a week or so. Remove cheese from cloth and place in a container.
Slice and peel the zucchinis. Figure how many slices you will need. I use 6 strips slightly overlapped for each layer, so if you are making a 4 layer (this is what I suggest) you will need 24 strips total. You can cut strips to fit slightly overlapping. I usual make 2-3 platters instead of all in one as they are easier to cut and serve into individual portions.
For the pesto
2 Cups basil tightly packed 
1-2 cloves garlic
½ cup walnuts or pinenuts or ¼ c of each
Approximately 2-3 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Generous pinch of salt or two.
Directions for pesto:
Place nuts and garlic in your food processor and pulse until broken down but still in small pieces. Add basil and salt, pulse while slowly adding olive oil thru the feed tube until smooth and creamy.
Scrape out pesto and place in a bowl.
(you do not have to rinse the food processor from the pesto residue to make the red sauce)
For the pasta sauce
3 medium tomatoes (to measure 2 C when cut in quarters)
1 1/2 c sundried tomatoes, soaked for 15-20 minutes...soaking time varies as dried tomatoes are sometimes pieces, halves or strips the tomatoes should feel soft when ready to use. 
2 cloves garlic
1 Tablespoon Tamari, Nama Shoyu or Braggs
Dash of pepper
1 1/2 Tablespoons of Italian herbs, thyme, rosemary, basil, marjoram
Good pinch or two of salt and pepper
If you like a little spice add a pinch of dried chilies or tiny piece of jalapeño pepper.
Directions for sauce:
Place the sundried tomatoes in your food processor and pulse a few times to break down slightly, add the fresh tomatoes, garlic, tamari, salt, pepper and herbs, and pulse until well combined. The sauce should be thick and slightly chunky. 
Optional, but I always use these items to place on layers, raw olives sliced or chopped, capers, and very thinly sliced marinated in tamari and olive oil Portobello mushrooms. 
To assemble
I do not use a Pyrex dish with high sides as it’s harder to cut and remove the pasta portions. I use a long plates that will fit in the dehydrator…or if you don’t have a dehydrator, an oven on the lowest degree with the door ajar will do. 
Place a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the platter you are using. Overlap slices of noodles to desired width and length. Spread a thin layer of cheese on top of the noodles covering all the zucchini. Sprinkle some raw sliced black olives and capers over the top of the cheese.
Place second layer of noodles on top and lightly press down.
Top this layer with pesto spread to cover the zucchini slices.
Place third layer of noodles on top and lightly press down.
Top this layer with more cheese and add sliced marinated Portobello mushrooms. Make sure to squeeze the liquid out of the mushrooms before placing on the sauce. 
Place fourth layer on noodles on top and lightly press down and top this with a nice layer of the pasta sauce. 
I like to marinate heirloom cherry tomatoes of all colors for about 15 minutes or so, cut in half placed in a bowl and squeeze pressed garlic, a few dashes of olive oil, cut basil, salt and pepper, mix lightly to incorporate flavors. 
Place the mixture on top of your lasagna with extra sliced basil.
You can also make a Parmesan nut cheese, by putting a generous handful of cashews (not soaked) in you food processor, add 1 clove garlic and a generous pinch of salt. You want this on the salty side.
Pulse until it looks like Parmesan cheese. I like to finish off the lasagna with the cheese to give it the cooked look.
Warm I your dehydrator at 105 degrees until just wilted about 1 hour or so. Just until slightly warm.
Cut with a very sharp knife to make individual servings. 






Monday, February 13, 2012

RAW Flow

I've been experimenting a lot lately with raw live (mostly) vegan food, eating a high RAW diet, that is  packed full of raw organic abundant nutrition.  
I've posted all my recipes (that include pix) in the RAW Flow tab I will continue to add to this as I explore, refine and also learn more and research more.
I have been storing a backlog of recipes on Evernote Food notebook - all the links to each individual recipe will take you to this format as you clink on each recipe. 

I also plan to make a list of the best blogs, websites and information in the growing RAW lifestyle realm so for now.......enjoy! 


zuchinni 'noodles' 


cali 'Rice"

Almond Mylk

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